Newcastle is in 'pole position' to host the Super League's annual Magic Weekend again in 2023, according to event bosses.
It comes after a hugely successful weekend that saw 62,154 fans flock to St James' Park to enjoy the annual two-day event in the sun on July 9 and 10.
The Rugby League Magic Weekend sees an entire round of Super League fixtures played over one weekend at a single stadium. Starting out in Cardiff in 2007, the event has been held in Edinburgh, Manchester and Liverpool, but looks to have found a permanent home in Newcastle, which has hosted six of the last seven editions.
And now, the league's chief commercial officer, Rhodri Jones, has confirmed that Newcastle looks to be a strong contender to host Magic Weekend once again next year.
"We'll do the post-event review, internally with the clubs and also with Newcastle United and Newcastle Council because they are part of the tripartite agreement we have here," Mr Jones told the PA news agency.
"There is a view to come back here next year but we'll only trigger that once we've done the review. There is an aspiration from the Newcastle side to have us back.
"We've had a great weekend. The city centre has been busy, hotel and accommodation rates are high and so they are very keen to have us back, but we need to do our own analysis and make a decision fairly quickly."
Newcastle is facing competition but organisers will take notice of feedback from fans, who have generally given St James' Park the thumbs-up.
"I had an interesting text from one stadium on Saturday saying they were watching and it looked great and they would be interested in having a conversation," Mr Jones revealed.
"It's closer to the heartland and a stadium that we've been to before but, to be fair to Newcastle, they're in pole position based on the number of years we've been here, the relationship we've got with the stadium, and the way the fans just love coming to Newcastle.
"We've been to Cardiff, Murrayfield, Manchester, and Liverpool but I said it a number of years ago, I think Magic has found its home here in Newcastle. It's got everything you want it to have and the stadium location is an integral part of its success."
Officials will also have a decision to make on the timing of the event. This year's event was moved back in the calendar due to the Challenge Cup final being brought forward from August to May and looks certain to shift again in 2023.
"It's broader than just what Magic Weekend looks like next year," Mr Jones added.
"We obviously need to feed in with the RFL in terms of the Challenge Cup and where the internationals sit next year. We had our first 2023 calendar meeting last Thursday."
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